1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an apparatus to slice potatoes and other vegetables into strips.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A common method of cutting potato strips to make french fries involves entraining the potatoes into a fast-moving water carrier which propels the potatoes against a set of knives or blades arranged into a grid. The spacing between adjacent blades corresponds to the cross section of the potato strip desired to be produced. It is known to incline the blades to the path of the potatoes to improve performance. For example, Dutch patent specification no. 8700507 discloses such a slicing apparatus. U.S. Pat. No. 5,009,141 uses blades of chevron configuration. These slicing apparatuses suffer the disadvantage of creating turbulence of the water carrier in the slicing apparatus. In other words, water moves not only along the desired path, but also transversely to it. Such turbulence tends to move the potato slightly transversely as it moves through the slicing apparatus, thereby creating a transverse component of the cuts. The result are strips that are more ragged than desired. Also, breakage occurs in the strips during cutting or thereafter. Also, prior slicing apparatuses including inclined blades cause shattering of the potato because a line of breakage tends to proceed in front of the actual cut of the potato.
Finally, the configuration of the slicing apparatus in the Dutch patent is such as to tend to cause the potato to veer somewhat from the perfect, desired path of travel, as it passes through the slicing apparatus.